Sunday, November 22, 2015

THE WINTER CROWN and a bit of news.

I am hoping to get back to proper blogging soon. There have just been so many things going on and so many deadlines to make that I have let it lapse for a short while. It's going to have a bit of a revamp soon too I hope.

For now I can announce that THE WINTER CROWN has just been published in paperback in the UK and has a gorgeous cover that I love. It's the second in my trilogy about Alienor of Aquitaine and covers the marriage between Henry and Alienor from 1154 as far as 1174.

I titled the novel THE WINTER CROWN for a few reasons.
1. It's in keeping with the seasonal theme of the trilogy.
2. Henry and Alienor were crowned in December 1154, so it's fitting
3. There's the emotional resonance of Winter in the relationship
4. Old Sarum reminds me a bit of a crown on its hilltop setting and it has resonances for Alienor.

You can see a few quotes from reviews on the blog sidebar.

You can click on its page on my website to see some of the other editions of the cover from round the world.THE WINTER CROWN

The other piece of news to tell you is that last week, after successful negotiations, I have agreed a new two book contract with my publisher LittleBrown at their Sphere imprint. TEMPLAR SILKS is going to be my next novel and will cover the 'lost years' of William Marshal when he took an oath to travel to Jerusalem and lay the cloak of his deceased lord, Henry the Young King, on Christ's tomb at the Holy Sepulchre. He returned bearing two lengths of silk that he put away in a chest for the next 30 years and about which he told no one save the man keeping them safe. This book is the story of those silks and their ultimate purpose.
I wrote a blog post about here, for THE HISTORY GIRLS. Click to read. A NEW ADVENTURE

I'm very much looking forward to writing the novel. I'll put up the first couple of chapter on my excerpts blog soon!

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THE WINTER CROWN

WHAT READERS ARE SAYING

" Wow! I feel like someone used to watching movies in black and white but has just seen the first one in technicolor! " A personal letter from a reader.

"The Winter Crown ...will, I have no doubt, become the definitive fictional account of this remarkable woman.' ..." I’ve read a fair few fictional depictions of Henry II over the years and I must say that his portrait in The Winter Crown has the most authentic feel of them all."Kate Atherton, author of For Winters Night blog.

"Eeanor’s life story has been told many times over in historical novels but rarely with such insight, emotional intensity and page-turning readability." Pam Norfolk, Lancashire Evening Post.

"In the world of the arts, the Black Legend and the Golden Myth still hold sway, as seen in novels, such as Alison Weir's, which seek to portray both the scandalous, adulterous queen of legend and the powerful female ruler. Historians may shake their heads at the perpetuation of such myths, but many historical novelists such as Sharon Kay Penman and Elizabeth Chadwick are seeking to apply modern scholarship to their fiction, and consequently avoid the most egregious of the legends that surround Eleanor."

THE SUMMER QUEEN UK cover

US paperback cover. UK hardback

WHAT READERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THE SUMMER QUEEN

"What I loved about this novel, and I have felt this way about all of Elizabeth’s novels that I have read, is that she does not pander to stereotypes or write scandal for the sake of it. The historical Eleanor is defamed beyond belief- a whore chasing anything in trousers, a woman who committed incest with her uncle, a woman who was ‘ahead of her time’, and so on. Elizabeth’s Alienor is none of these things. She is treated fairly, as a woman of her own time, written in a believable way. Elizabeth does not go for scandal because she does not need to- the writing in this novel makes that very clear. Her scene setting is lovely, her character development top notch, and the book is a compulsive page turner. I couldn’t put it down." Sarah Bell

."The Summer Queen is a fabulous novel based on the most up-to-date and meticulous research. This is historical fiction at its best and I loved every page of it." Kate Atherton, blogger.

"I have read just about everything I can about Eleanor and enjoyed both biographical and fictional accounts of her life but I must say that your creation of Eleanor is the most compelling." Reader from Australia

"I loved the story; I loved the way the author wrote Alienor as a woman of her times instead of a thoroughly modern independent woman, or a slut in chase of anything in pants. As with all Chadwick novels, there's also the added plus of being sucked into another century with the sights, smells and sounds that wrap up a darn-near perfect reading experience. I couldn't put it down, and very sorry I'm going to have to wait for the next installment. Reader from the USA"

I often see the expressions, `fleshing out the history' and `making it real', and they more than apply here...the main aspect that made me keep turning the pages and burning the midnight oil? The things that I didn't know about Alienor.." Reader from Australia

"Chadwick has succeeded where many other novelists have failed by giving us not just the legend but the very human young woman – intelligent, determined, witty and sexy." Pam Norfolk. Lancashire Evening Post.